A typical breaker panel, such as a breaker panel in a residential building or commercial building, includes a bus bar structure that has at least one, and typically two or three elongated hot bus bars that are respectively connected to different phases in an electrical system. FIGS. 1 and 2 illustrate an example breaker panel with two bus bars. The bus bars are usually interspersed in an opposing comb-like structure. The bus bars are arranged within the breaker panel such that as breakers are cumulatively added to the breaker panel, the load of the system is distributed among the phases.
The bus bars on the breaker panel are often exposed at various times. For example, when a panel is first installed, conductive portions of the bus bar that electrically couple to breakers may be exposed when the breakers are not installed. This can lead to an electrical hazard. Additionally, during installation, there may be additional construction going on in the area of the breaker panel. Construction debris, such as drywall dust, for example, may deposit on the exposed portions of the bus bar. If the debris is not cleaned before a breaker is connected to the bus bar, conduction between the breaker and the bus bar may be inhibited by the resulting resistance. This can lead nuisance trips, shorts, and equipment failure. Further still, during painting, paint may be accidentally applied to the bus bars, which drastically inhibits a conductive connection between the bus bar and circuit breaker.